Steve Barton

Stour Valley Community School in Clare has seen its first ever set of students complete their GCSEs - and the school’s head is ‘delighted’ with many of the results.

Year 11 at Stour Valley, which opened in 2011, is made up just 37 students and they the first to have come through the Suffolk County Council Schools’ Organisational Review.

Students worked exceptionally hard throughout their courses and, with the benefit of a ‘no study leave’ policy, were able to receive support from their teachers right up to the day of their final exam, achieving 58% A* to C grades.

All students have met, and many exceeded, the national expectation for this year group.

The school’s head teacher Christine Inchley said she was particularly delighted with results in Maths and Science, where 25 per cent of all grades awarded were A* and A grades - 87 per cent of students also achieved A* to C grades in English Literature.

Mrs Inchley added: “We are confident that all of the students who joined Stour Valley in year nine in 2011 have developed into well qualified, mature and confident young people who are well equipped to take on the next stage in their lives. We are proud of them all.”

Outstanding results were achieved by a number of students, including Sebastian Hawkins who now has 11 GCSEs, 8 of them at A*/A grade, and Gaia Johnstone who is the proud owner of 10 GCSEs, 8 of them at A*/A grade.

Keith Haisman, chair of governors, said “Stour Valley Community School has always been about providing high quality education in the rural community.

“The Governing Body is delighted with the success of all students as they take their next steps on their career path.”